Can the Leafs Beat Boston?

[hap_leaf]

I think a key is to rattle Chara and get him off his game.  Lots of forechecking and get in on him when he has the puck in the corners.  Get him aggravated and he makes mistakes. 

Interestingly, they have 11 guys that have played all their games so far.  They are due for some injuries.

 

[ZBBM]

I like this thread.  It's essentially a GDT 2 days in advance.  It reminds me of the old days on this board, when people had GDTs up and running within a half-hour of the 24-hr limit.  There was that much enthusiasm then.  We haven't seen it in years.

 

[bustaheims]

Remember when we used to do this to Tim Thomas?

http://youtu.be/IiWm_rD-p00

Maybe we should bring back John Pohl, Bates Battaglia and Kris Newbury . . . or, maybe not.

 

[McPwnage]

I wouldn't mind having steen back, he is the only real talent from that era I think could still play with the new club. 

 

[Zee]

I like this thread.  It's essentially a GDT 2 days in advance.  It reminds me of the old days on this board, when people had GDTs up and running within a half-hour of the 24-hr limit.  There was that much enthusiasm then.  We haven't seen it in years.

I think it speaks to the importance of these upcoming 2 games in the eyes of Leafs fans.  Fans want to see where the team is at with respects to the best.  Boston is now if full gear and have handled the Leafs easily in two meetings so far.  I hazard to guess these upcoming games mean more to the Leafs than the Bruins.  Hopefully the Leafs catch them flat and content with their recent streak.

 

[freer]

I think if TO can get through the first 3 -5 mins of the game without falling behind they will do fine. I just hope Kessel can get it going against Boston. It took a few games before he was able to get point against them last season.

 

[Arn]

Remember when we used to do this to Tim Thomas?

http://youtu.be/IiWm_rD-p00

Maybe we should bring back John Pohl, Bates Battaglia and Kris Newbury . . . or, maybe not.

haha I was just thinking of those exact same names.

Chad Kilger, however... Or Steen?

 

[caver]

What ever happened to Chad Kilger. As I remember he was traded from the Leafs to_______ and then he sort of went AWOL.

 

[bustaheims]

What ever happened to Chad Kilger. As I remember he was traded from the Leafs to_______ and then he sort of went AWOL.

Florida. And, it's personal issues. He's retired (though, I'm not sure if it's official or not).

 

[maplesyrup]

What ever happened to Chad Kilger. As I remember he was traded from the Leafs to_______ and then he sort of went AWOL.

Florida. And, it's personal issues. He's retired (though, I'm not sure if it's official or not).

Actually, he's retired from hockey and a fire fighter in Cornwall, On.

 

[hap_leaf]

What ever happened to Chad Kilger. As I remember he was traded from the Leafs to_______ and then he sort of went AWOL.

Florida. And, it's personal issues. He's retired (though, I'm not sure if it's official or not).

Actually, he's retired from hockey and a fire fighter in Cornwall, On.

I'd dread to be on the opposing team in the firefighter's intersquad games.  ;D

 

[lamajama]

If we can get away from Gus et all doing the whiff on the first chance and get to the end of the first tied or ahead we could be OK.

 

[McPwnage]

No we can't

 

[ZBBM]

Well, these 2 games were a test for the Leafs and people like Cox will bray as loudly as they can in tomorrow's column about how we failed.  As we've seen, he's already nattering on twitter.

And, as far as he cares to go, he's right.

But the bigger picture is not so dire.  Here's a team that went 18 games w/o its starter and didn't nosedive.  Kudos to Gus and Scrivens for holding the fort.

What we are looking at with the Leafs is exactly what most people predicted at the start of the season: a team that will have to fight its way into the playoffs.  There's too much inconsistency to think otherwise.

What could change that is if Reimer gets hot.  So far, who can tell?  He didn't play all the brilliantly before he got hurt (I think his record flattered him a bit) and tonight, although I didn't see it, he was average.

Is this analysis any different than the majority opinion at the start of the season?  Nope.  We are going to go as far as Reimer can take us, and that still seems to be true.  I just hope that his injury isn't going to affect his play long-term.

So the test against the Bruins?  Yeah, we flunked.  We aren't a contender.  I think all of us knew that anyway.  But if things go right, we can still get into the playoffs, and hopefully get some positive experience for this very young team.

 

[Zee]

Well, these 2 games were a test for the Leafs and people like Cox will bray as loudly as they can in tomorrow's column about how we failed.  As we've seen, he's already nattering on twitter.

And, as far as he cares to go, he's right.

But the bigger picture is not so dire.  Here's a team that went 18 games w/o its starter and didn't nosedive.  Kudos to Gus and Scrivens for holding the fort.

What we are looking at with the Leafs is exactly what most people predicted at the start of the season: a team that will have to fight its way into the playoffs.  There's too much inconsistency to think otherwise.

What could change that is if Reimer gets hot.  So far, who can tell?  He didn't play all the brilliantly before he got hurt (I think his record flattered him a bit) and tonight, although I didn't see it, he was average.

Is this analysis any different that the majority opinion at the start of the season?  Nope.  We are going to go as far as Reimer can take us, and that still seems to be true.  I just hope that his injury isn't going to affect his play long-term.

So the test against the Bruins?  Yeah, we flunked.  We aren't a contender.  I think all of us knew that anyway.  But if things go right, we can still get into the playoffs, and hopefully get some positive experience for this very young team.

Well said man.

 

[bustaheims]

Well, these 2 games were a test for the Leafs and people like Cox will bray as loudly as they can in tomorrow's column about how we failed.  As we've seen, he's already nattering on twitter.

And, as far as he cares to go, he's right.

But the bigger picture is not so dire.  Here's a team that went 18 games w/o its starter and didn't nosedive.  Kudos to Gus and Scrivens for holding the fort.

What we are looking at with the Leafs is exactly what most people predicted at the start of the season: a team that will have to fight its way into the playoffs.  There's too much inconsistency to think otherwise.

What could change that is if Reimer gets hot.  So far, who can tell?  He didn't play all the brilliantly before he got hurt (I think his record flattered him a bit) and tonight, although I didn't see it, he was average.

Is this analysis any different than the majority opinion at the start of the season?  Nope.  We are going to go as far as Reimer can take us, and that still seems to be true.  I just hope that his injury isn't going to affect his play long-term.

So the test against the Bruins?  Yeah, we flunked.  We aren't a contender.  I think all of us knew that anyway.  But if things go right, we can still get into the playoffs, and hopefully get some positive experience for this very young team.

And, as I pointed out in the GDT, the record/results against Boston are probably getting more weight placed on them than they deserve. The Leafs are 14-6-2 against teams that aren't the Bruins so far this season, with a goal differential of +16. Against the rest of the NHL so far, the Leafs have been excellent, and 54 of their remaining 56 games are against teams that aren't the Bruins.

 

[GhostofPotvin29]

Some teams just don't play well against a certain team.

 

[cw]

Some teams just don't play well against a certain team.

Yep.

I think the Sens during the Quinn playoff years would attest to that.

 

[Redleaf]

Some teams just don't play well against a certain team.

Yep.

I think the Sens during the Quinn playoff years would attest to that.

I don't want our team to be associated in any way to that pack of losers.

 

[slapshot]

I think CW basically nailed it in yesterday Game Day thread, by putting things in perspective - the Leafs should not be compared at this point to the Stanley Cup champs. A couple of points re: Bruins and Leafs:

1. Bruins, keep in mind they also destroyed the Canucks in a couple of games during last year's playoffs, and they were the league's best team through the season, with a highly experienced Vezina nominee goaltender. But essentially the issue was the same. The Bruins had more toughness to "go with" the skill, along with better goaltending. The Canucks led by the Sedins and Kesler, were no match physically for Chara, Lucic and the of the physical Bruins.

2. The Leafs. There is a consensus building, and rightly, so that the Leafs need to add more turculence, testosterone and physically to their line-up, to "go with" their skill to go to the next level (I think we all agree they are up a level from where they were. But the kind of guys they need don't exactly grow on trees, and teams that have them aren't exactly giving them away. However, Burke knows this - and you can bet WANTS THIS - that's why he is trying to find this piece "in the draft." Brad Ross is considered a Tucker like player (though probably a bit overwhelmed by his first camp) went back is have a fine years in junior. Also, check out this assessment from thehockeywriters.com...

"While Tyler may not be a number five guy, he does bring value as a number fifteen guy (Bob MacKenzie?s scout consensus) because he is one of those players who can determine the outcome of a hockey game and determine it early because of his demolition derby style of play backed up by NHL power forward size and strength. All you have to do is look at the Stanley Cup Finals where all the games were won by the team scoring the first goal and generally by the team outmuscling the opposition. Would Vancouver Canucks have won the Stanley Cup if they had a seasoned version of Tyler Biggs in the lineup? Would Vancouver have got by the Chicago Black Hawks if Chicago had a seasoned Tyler Biggs in their lineup? A lot of NHL General Managers would probably answer ?no? to both questions which is why Tyler Biggs is rated so highly in this year?s draft."
You should read the whole profile at...

http://thehockeywriters.com/tyler-biggs-leafs-prospectprofil/

The NHL comparable projections they use are actually Lucic and Dustin Brown.

So you can see that Burke knows the right mix has to be in place. Leaf fans are just going to have to be a bit more patient - tough to say after what 44 years (I saw the last win personally, so I know how agonizing it is). I am confident we will get there in the next couple of years and Leaf fans will be loving it in the playoffs.
The Bruins will have their injury and free agent issues eventually, and Rask will have to show he's a big game performer like Thomas soon.
People go on about the Kessel deal, but the Rask one actually bugs be more. We got a star player in Kessel, and absolutely nothing for Rask.
As for last night, I think having Armstrong, Komisarek and Orr in the line-up (please send Dupuis to the Marlies) wouldn't have helped. Wouldn't it have made the difference? Probably not, but a little push back would have been in order.